Fly Away on Wings of Wind
by Krasavitsa
Summary: "Lithuania, are we...are we going to be okay?" Latvia wrung his hands, forcing himself to ignore the Russian lying on the floor. / When a nuclear bomb explodes over Leningrad, Russia and the Baltics must stay in a fallout shelter to survive.
1. Chapter 1

_**Note: St. Petersburg is referred to as Leningrad in this story. I don't own Hetalia.**_

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><p>It was almost dusk in cold Leningrad, and Lithuania drew the curtains in the Baltics' bedroom and turned on a lamp that rested on a table next to the window. After lighting a fire in the fireplace, Lithuania turned and left the room, shutting the door firmly behind him.<p>

Little did he know that he would never see that room again.

A dull roar from outside snapped Lithuania out of his reverie. "L-latvia, was that you?" he yelled shakily, voice echoing through the enormous house.

No answer.

"Wh-what was that noise?" The only response was another roar that sounded like the engines of airplanes. A window broke, letting in a blast of freezing wind. Then a siren that he had never heard before went off, blaring with shrill, swooping wails.

"Šūdas," Lithuania cursed. He rushed through the empty halls and into a room where a large radio stood imposingly on the floor. With trembling fingers, he quickly turned the dial on the radio until he found the Soviet broadcasting station. Leaning in closer to listen, he heard only static.

"Come on, come on," he murmured, clasping his hands together nervously. The swooping siren got louder outside, but Lithuania heard a tinny sound come out of the radio. Maybe that could tell him what the hell was going on.

On the radio, a muffled-sounding orchestra was playing the Soviet national anthem. "_Everything is fine,_" a deep Russian voice said every few seconds.

"Šūdas!" Lithuania yelled for the second time today. A small head peeked into the room - Latvia. He was crying, face scrunched up with confusion.

"Lithuania, wh-what's going on? There's a scary noise, and you y-yelled, and-"

"Stupid Soviet propaganda!" Lithuania shouted at the radio. Latvia jumped back in surprise, and Lithuania instantly felt remorseful. "Oh, I'm s-sorry, Latvia, it's just that I don't know what's going on either, and I'm...I'm scared, too."

The roar got louder. Both Baltics glanced at each other. "L-lithuania-" Latvia began.

Lithuania held up a hand. "Shhh!" He grabbed the radio dial again, fingers fumbling slightly, and turned it to the BBC station. He bent his head close to the radio in time to hear a British voice emerge from the static, speaking frantically.

"_The United States has fired a nuclear bomb at the Soviet Union. I repeat, the United States has fired a nuclear bomb at the Soviet Union. Prepare for immediate nuclear war!"_

Lithuania slumped against the radio, ghostly pale. "_O Dieve mano_!"

Latvia collapsed to the floor, sobbing. "Wh-what are we going to do?" he wailed.

"What are we going to do? I-I don't know! How would _I _know?" Lithuania snapped the radio off. "We...we need to get to a fallout shelter. But is there even one in this house?"

"Y-yes, there is!" Latvia said. He stood up to meet Lithuania's panicked eyes.

"There is? Where?"

"I-in the basement," Latvia said. The noise outside got louder, so the Latvian had to yell to be heard. "In a small room, where R-russia took me once to th-threaten me."

"Russia did _wh-what? _Oh, who even cares?" Lithuania walked over to Latvia on shaky legs and put both hands on his shoulders. "Okay, Latvia, I want you to go get Estonia, and bring him to the f-fallout shelter." His voice cracked on the words _fallout shelter_, and he wiped some tears from his eyes. "Latvia, if anything h-happens to me-"

Latvia looked up at Lithuania in surprise. "If anything _happens_ to you? Lithuania, wh-what do you think is going to happen?"

"I just-"

"A-aren't you coming with me to get Estonia?"

"_N-ne_," Lithuania said firmly. "I am going to get Russia, to take him to the fallout shelter."

Latvia burst into tears, incredulous. "You're going to save _R-russia_? Why?"

Lithuania began to answer, but was interrupted by the siren, which had stopped its wailing and was now emitting shrill bursts of sound. "This is bad, this is really bad," he muttered, and rushed off, leaving a stricken Latvia behind.

"C-come back," Latvia murmured mournfully. He listened to the siren for a moment, sighed, then ran as fast as he could to the kitchen, where he knew Estonia was cooking dinner.

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><p>Lithuania hurried through the hallways, mentally cursing Russia's house for being so big. He panted as he ran, trying frantically to go faster than he ever had before. The siren increased in volume as Lithuania approached a shut door - Russia's room.<p>

Lithuania tried the door; it was locked. Heart racing with alarm, he banged on the door with all his might. "Lithuania?" a Russian-accented voice asked. The door opened from the inside, and the Lithuanian fell into the room with a shriek.

The siren was fainter here, yet still audible. Lithuania could have sworn that the house was shaking...or was that him? He looked up to find Russia staring down at him with a panicked look in his eyes. "Wh-what-?" Lithuania stuttered.

Russia seized Lithuania's arm and roughly pulled him up to a standing position. The Russian was sweating profusely, and his face was pale. "Lithuania, you've got to help me," he said desperately.

Lithuania tried to speak, but words wouldn't come out of his mouth. Russia paced the room in a panic. "There...there's something wrong in my country," he said, near to tears. "I can feel it - like something bad's about to happen."

The curtains on Russia's window were flying every which way, and the glass on the window had cracked, letting in a freezing wind. Quickly snapping his eyes away from the window, Lithuania sobbed, "America is going to bomb us! We have to get to a fallout shelter!"

Russia stepped back in shock. "You mean..." His face paled. "America-" He swayed.

Lithuania nodded panickedly. "Yes, and we have to get to safety!" He grabbed Russia's arm and tried to pull the large country out of the room. "Come _on_!"

Russia brushed Lithuania's hand off. His eyes were glazed. "It's no use," he said simply. "My country has been attacked. I will feel the pain no matter where I am."

Lithuania shook his head in frustration. "B-but you _have_ to come! Just because we are nations doesn't mean that we won't be _incinerated _if we don't seek safety."

But Russia was looking off into the distance, not listening. "My...my people," he murmured. "Most of them will die..."

"Russia…"

"How dare America do this to me? How _dare _he?"

"Russia, p-please…"

Russia snapped his head around to face Lithuania. "Be quiet!" he yelled. Lithuania shut his mouth and trembled.

Russia sat on his bed and looked out his window, squinting due to the freezing wind that blew in through the crack. The roar of the plane engines was nearly almost overhead, and the siren was blaring at full volume. He sighed and mumbled something that sounded almost like a prayer under his breath.

Lithuania was shaking with panic. A nuclear bomb was about to explode, and here he was stuck in Russia's room! "RUSSIA, _NOW_!" He seized Russia's arm and yanked him off the bed, grunting a little from the effort. With his other arm, he slapped the Russian across the face.

Russia's eyes opened wide, and he looked curiously at Lithuania. "Huh?" he said. But then he glanced outside to see trees toppling over, bent by the monstrous wind. The head of a bronze Lenin statue blew across the yard.

It was as if a fire had been lit underneath the Russian. "Come _on_, Litva, what are you waiting for?" he asked maniacally, then grabbed Lithuania's arm and tugged the surprised nation out of the room.

"Where...what-" Lithuania tried to say, but Russia was pulling him so fast that he couldn't catch his breath. The snow on the ground outside was shaking, everything was shaking, the siren was blaring, the roar was intense-

Russia and Lithuania sped towards the basement, yanking open the door and rushing towards a little room with an iron-plated trapdoor.

Finally catching his breath, Lithuania forced open the trapdoor and pushed Russia inside with trembling hands. Looking down, he could see that the fallout shelter was pitch black. "Latvia? Estonia? A-are you in there?"

Two shaky voices replied, "Y-yes."

Lithuania sighed with relief. "G-good. I'm coming d-" A brilliant flash of light illuminated the house, rendering Lithuania speechless. He covered his eyes with both hands to shield them. "Ohhhh…"

Below him, voices shrieked and yelled. Lithuania felt himself teetering on the edge of the shelter. The light was blinding, even through his hands. He had lost his balance, he was falling, falling, falling…

A hand grabbed his and yanked Lithuania into the dark fallout shelter. Lithuania fumbled around and found a long ladder, which he shakily climbed down. Someone - probably Estonia - slammed the trapdoor shut and secured it, and, with a crunch and a flash of light, the house above them was completely obliterated.

Russia screamed.

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><p><em><strong>If you like the story so far, please review! :)<strong>_

_**Translations:**_

_**Šūdas: Sh*t (Lithuanian)**_

_**O Dieve mano: Oh my god (Lithuanian)**_

_**Ne: No (Lithuanian)**_


	2. Chapter 2

_**I don't own Hetalia.**_

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><p>Russia screeched once and toppled over, falling backwards with a horrible thump onto the cold concrete floor. Rolling around in agony, he screamed and screamed, loud cries echoing off the cinderblock walls. His breaths became shuddering and frantic, as if he was suffering the pain of millions of people at once.<p>

The Baltics huddled underneath the entrance to the fallout shelter, eyes wide with horror. For an agonizing moment, Lithuania couldn't breathe. He just stood, shivering with fear, and stared fixedly off into the darkness.

Images raced through his mind of a demolished world - a nuclear wasteland like Hiroshima and Nagasaki, where even the land was burnt and charred. _That's not what just happened, was it?_ He stifled a sob. _It couldn't be._

A hand softly touched his arm, and Lithuania jumped, startled. "L-latvia?"

Latvia looked up at Lithuania. His eyes were wet with tears, and he was trembling involuntarily. "Lithuania, are we...are we going to be okay?"

Caught off guard by Latvia's blunt question, Lithuania stumbled over his words. "Ah, I...I think so. I mean, we're all safe now, r-right?"

He glanced around at the other Baltics. Latvia was a ghostly shade of pale, and Estonia was shuffling his feet nervously and fidgeting with his glasses. Lithuania knew that he himself looked just as shaken as the others.

Latvia furrowed his brow. "I-I guess," he replied, and looked down at the floor.

Russia's screams became piercing and pleading, and Lithuania winced, trying not to listen to the horrible sound.

"L-lithuania?" Latvia mumbled softly after a while.

"Yes?"

"It's too dark and loud, and...and I'm h-hungry." The Latvian began to sob, pressing his head into Lithuania's shirt.

Lithuania felt like crying himself, but instead he put his arm around the Latvian. "Well, why don't we t-turn on a light and take a look around this p-place?" He had meant to say this light-heartedly, but it came out more shaky than he'd intended.

"O-okay." Latvia wiped his eyes, then took a breath. "Hey, m-maybe Estonia can come with us to help!" He looked over at Estonia, who was staring off in the direction of Russia's screams.

"That's a good idea," said Lithuania.

Latvia reached over and tapped Estonia on the shoulder. "Estonia, d-do you want to look around the b-bomb shelter with us?"

No response. The Estonian was immobile, looking down at the floor.

"E-estonia?" Latvia asked again tentatively. "Estonia, are you o-okay?"

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><p>Estonia stared down at the floor, trying to stop his clammy hands from trembling. <em>It's okay, it's okay, it's okay, <em>he thought to himself, but his repeated mantra didn't reassure him at all.

A nuclear bomb had just exploded! A _bomb!_ That meant death, destruction, sickness...and Estonia didn't dare think about the possibility of radioactive fallout. His hands balled into shaky fists. _No matter what has happened, the world will never be the same again._

Estonia felt a strange urge to just had to open his mouth and _scream! _He took a deep breath. _On the count of three: one, two-_

"AAAAAAHHH!" A voice bellowed from the center of the room, and Estonia jumped; it wasn't him who had just screamed. Squinting in the darkness, Estonia could make out the crumpled figure of Russia with his mouth open, screeching and wailing.

A shiver went down the Estonian's spine. Russia must be hurt beyond belief! It must be _torture _to have one's land and people almost completely destroyed. He shifted his feet and stared at the ground again, trying to drown out the nation's agonized wails.

The Estonian was beginning to feel very freaked out by this whole situation. He just wanted to be back upstairs in Russia's kitchen cooking borscht, or at least lying down in a quiet place with his hands over his ears. But no, he was in a freezing fallout shelter with the scariest person in the world lying on the floor screaming. What could be worse than that?

"E-estonia? Estonia, are you o-okay?" A tentative voice shattered him out of his thoughts. He sighed and looked down at Latvia, who was peering up at him worriedly.

"What?" he said, maybe a little ruder than he'd meant to. He didn't want to talk to anyone right now, not until he'd had some more time to process what was going on.

Latvia let out a breath in noticeable relief, completely disregarding Estonia's rudeness. "S-sorry, Estonia, but you didn't respond the first time I a-asked you, and I thought-"

Estonia sighed. "No, I'm fine, just...worried. What did you want to ask me?"

"W-well, Lithuania and I are going to l-look for food, and I was wondering if y-you wanted to come with us?"

Estonia rubbed his cold arms and shrugged; it was becoming clear that he wouldn't have any time to himself in this place. "Sure," he told the Latvian. _At least _that _will distract me from Russia. _He adjusted his glasses slightly and squinted in the dark. "We might want to turn on a light, though…"

His gaze fell on Latvia's face, which was drawn with worry and fear. _He needs something to do, something that will give him something else to think about. _"Hey, Latvia?" Estonia said.

Latvia shivered. "W-what?"

"M-maybe you could look for some flashlights or something, get some light in h-here?" Estonia smiled reassuringly at the young teen.

Latvia immediately perked up, although he still trembled a bit. "O-okay, I'll do that! You and L-lithuania can s-start looking around the shelter!"

"Alright. See you soon." Latvia ran off, and Estonia drew a deep, shuddering breath. Latvia was gone, and no matter how scared Estonia was, it was time to face the bomb shelter.

Estonia walked towards Lithuania, who was staring fixedly at the center of the room. "H-hey, Lithuania," said Estonia. "Latvia's getting some f-flashlights, so why don't w-we explore the room?"

The Lithuanian looked up from where he was standing. His face was pale and his legs were trembling, and he looked stricken. "W-what?" he asked, stuttering slightly.

"Ah, is there something wrong?" Estonia asked, immediately worried. There was definitely something off about the oldest Baltic.

Lithuania tried to smile, but it looked more like a grimace. "N-no, nothing…but Russia's screams sure are loud, a-aren't they?"

A shiver went down Estonia's spine. "Y-yeah, they are. Why do you ask?"

Lithuania shuddered. "You don't happen to hear him screaming any...w-words, do you?"

"W-words? No…" But upon listening closer, Estonia could make out the sound of words, distorted as they were by Russia's wails.

"You hear them, right? I c-can't tell what he's saying, but I thought you could, m-maybe..." Lithuania shuffled his feet nervously.

"Huh, I'll try," said Estonia. Tilting his ear towards where Russia lay in the center of the dark room, he strained to hear individual words among the screams. At first, he could only make out a few sounds. "_Po…" "mne, Lit…"_

"I-It's in Russian," he grumbled in frustration. "If it were in Estonian, I'd be able to understand it better." After another moment of listening, Estonia found that Russia was repeating the same phrase over and over. "_Pomo…gite mne…L-"_

Both Baltics realized it at the same time. Lithuania stiffened and yelped softly, and Estonia felt a sudden burst of dread. "_P-pomogite mne, Litva _- h-help me, Lithuania…" Lithuania murmured, his shaky voice almost inaudible. "He...h-he wants me to h-help him."

"Wh-why would he want you to do th-that?" Estonia asked nervously.

Lithuania wrung his hands. "I-I don't know! He always...preferred me, for some reason. But it's not like I _want_ to help h-him!"

"_LITVAAAAAAAA!" _Russia howled again, surprising Estonia, who stepped back in surprise at the sheer volume of the yell.

Lithuania shuddered. "But I h-have to do it," he muttered, as if convincing himself. "I can't just..._refuse_ to obey Russia. Who knows wh-what he'll do to us if I don't?"

Estonia felt horrible. He was in way over his head with this; he usually just tried to stay as far away from Russia as he could. "L-lithuania, I-I don't think you-"

Latvia scurried up to the two nations with an armful of flashlights. "I-I found some flashlights!" he said. "B-but I couldn't get much else b-because I didn't want to look a-alone." He paused, looking up at the older two Baltics. "Lithuania, I-I'm hungry. Can we p-please-"

"_LITVAAAAAAAA!_" Russia screeched again and kicked the floor a few times. All three Baltics jumped and immediately shook in fear.

Latvia began to wail. "I'm scaaaared!" he cried, running over to Lithuania for reassurance. But Lithuania stood still and didn't comfort the youngest Baltic.

"I...I have to h-help him, right?" he murmured. "He n-needs help. I can't just l-leave him there on the f-floor."

Latvia furrowed his brow, confused. "Who needs h-help?" he asked through his tears.

"R-Russia does," explained Estonia, voice quavering.

"But why-"

"I-I don't know! I have no idea what's going on," Estonia snapped, pushing his glasses further up on his nose.

Lithuania turned to face Estonia and put a trembling hand on his shoulder. "I-I know what's going on," he said softly. "Latvia, can I have a f-flashlight?"

Latvia shivered. "S-sure." He passed a flashlight to Lithuania, who turned it on, lighting up the gray fallout shelter and the Baltics' pale faces.

"I can't l-leave him there to s-suffer," Lithuania said, voice quaking. "And...e-even though he's hurt, he's s-still more powerful than any of u-us. I-I must go."

"D-don't go!" Latvia sobbed, reaching out towards Lithuania. "Don't l-leave us!"

Lithuania looked heartbroken. "Latvia, I p-promise-" his voice caught. "I p-promise I'll be b-back soon." He took a few steps into the black depths of the room, his flashlight shining a bright circle on the concrete floor. "I'm only going to the c-center of the room, you k-know."

"W-wait, Lithuania," called Estonia. "Just...be c-careful. Russia can be _v-very _unpredictable."

"I know. Believe me, I k-know."

Estonia and Latvia watched Lithuania's retreating figure. "Y-you know he's stupid to do this, right?" Estonia said to Latvia.

Latvia nodded silently, tears rolling down his face.

"Well, we might as well find something to eat," Estonia said, taking a flashlight from the pile and turning it on. "Who knows if Russia even _has _food in here." The two Baltics walked towards the wooden shelves that lined the walls of the shelter.

And Lithuania gasped as his flashlight shone on the Russian lying in the center of the room.

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><p><em><span><strong>Translations:<strong>_

_**Pomogite mne, Litva: Help me, Lithuania (Russian)**_

_**I have to say, thank you so much for all the reviews, follows, and favorites! They really mean a lot to me. :)**_

_**These chapters take a long time to write, so I'm probably going to update at least every other week. But hopefully it'll be faster than that…**_


	3. Chapter 3

_**Warning: This chapter is a bit gory at the beginning.**_

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><p>Russia lay on his back on the floor, pale hair plastered to his sweaty face. When the light from Lithuania's flashlight shone in his eyes, he made no move to look away. "<em>Litvaaa,"<em> he rasped.

Shuddering, Lithuania knelt on the ground next to Russia, shining his flashlight on the Russian's body. His stomach heaved when he saw the hideous injuries, yet he couldn't pull his eyes away.

Russia was covered with burns. Bloody red blisters flecked his arms and legs, and angry raised scars had sprung up all over the his body. His skin was red and flaky, as if it had been sunburned.

Pressing a shaking hand to his mouth, Lithuania swallowed hard against the bile rising steadily in his throat. But he retched and the vomit spilled out in a rush, making a sick splattering sound on the ground.

Russia groaned and inched slightly away from the pool of vomit slowly spreading on the floor. Lithuania stood up and wiped his mouth with his hand, hot tears running down his face. _Why did he have to do this? _He was used to gruesome injuries from having to clean the other Baltics' wounds after Russia's "punishments", but this was nothing like he had ever seen before.

These burns were the injuries of the Russian people - radiation poisoning and flash burns all mixed into one. And...it was basically pointless for Lithuania to help Russia, because, as a country, he wouldn't heal until his citizens did.

Anger rose up inside Lithuania as he looked down at the prone Russian, trying not to throw up again. His hands balled into fists. _Why _should _he help him? It's not like Russia could do anything to him when he was this weak!_

He glanced over his shoulder and saw a flashlight bobbing on the other side of the room - Estonia and Latvia, looking around the fallout shelter. And here _he_ was, stuck tending the very nation who held him captive!

_Maybe he should walk away; escape. Get as far away as he could. _Lithuania snapped his eyes away from Russia's bloody burns and took a trembling step back, glancing nervously at the Russian. _Russia wouldn't notice...would he?_

_Yes. _A hand shot out before Lithuania could get any farther and grabbed his ankle roughly, rendering him immobile. "Stay," Russia's pained voice hissed, "or Estonia and Latvia will die."

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><p><em>The fallout shelter smelled like mildew. <em>That's the first thing that went through Estonia's head as his flashlight illuminated a small, gray room with cinderblock walls and a concrete floor. Wooden shelves lined the walls, and two bunk beds with simple mattresses and blankets stood in a corner.

He wrinkled his nose, and his gaze fell on a little table and a couple of chairs that took up an area in the middle of the room slightly to the right of where Russia lay. The table was covered by a faded red tablecloth, and the chairs looked rickety and unstable. Estonia made up his mind never to sit in them.

A chain hung from the ceiling connected to a lightbulb, but when Estonia pulled it, he found that he had been right - there was no electricity in the bomb shelter. He knew it was because the bomb had severed all the power lines in the area, but he couldn't help feeling a small spasm of fear in his stomach. _Were they the only survivors? What had happened to the world outside?_

Shaking his head to clear it, Estonia moved on to the wooden shelves, Latvia trailing dutifully behind him. All the typical survival equipment was there - flashlights, batteries, a small radio - but something seemed a bit..._off_ about the shelves of food.

There was food there, of course - canned goods like fruit and soup, beans and rice, cereal and crackers - but Estonia had the strange impulse to check just to make sure. With a trembling finger, he began counting in Estonian. "_Üks, kaks, kolm…"_

_Something wasn't right. _Estonia squinted and looked closer at the food. His heart pounded in his chest, and he gripped his flashlight hard, knuckles turning white with the force of his grasp. _Of course there's enough food_, he thought. _Why wouldn't there be?_

But after counting two more times and doing the math in his head, there was no reason left for him to doubt what he saw - the food stocked on the shelves would only last four people about one month.

Estonia felt dizzy. His mind raced. _One month...that's barely enough time for the radiation dust in the air to settle! If our food runs out, there will be no escape, no way out except through the painful death of radiation poisoning-_ His breathing got faster; for some reason, he couldn't get enough air. There was this...terrible suffocating sensation that just wouldn't go away. _What will happen to us when there's no food? Will we...will we all die?_

Now Estonia was gasping for air, black spots dancing in front of his eyes as he took narrow, shuddering breaths. His hands went limp and the flashlight dropped to the ground, switching off as soon as it hit the floor. The room plunged into darkness other than the dim circle of light from Lithuania's flashlight.

_We could be dead in one month one month one month-_

A faint voice yelled, "Estonia! E-estonia!" Estonia turned clumsily towards the sound, but everything just seemed to blur together. He felt himself sway, clutching for something to hold on to but finding nothing but air...

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><p>A small hand grabbed his and pulled him down to the floor. Estonia sat on the cold ground, trembling and shivering, and the room eventually swam into focus.<p>

Latvia stood peering down at him with worry in his eyes. "E-estonia," he stuttered, voice quaking.

Estonia glanced around, trying to get his bearings. He was half-sitting, half-lying next to the shelves of food, flashlight lying smashed beside him. His heart pounded _One month one month one month one month._

"Wh-what happened to you?" Latvia asked. "You...you were doing something with the food - c-counting it, maybe? And then you t-turned pale and s-started gasping and it was really, really s-scary!" His voice rose in pitch as he spoke.

Estonia sat up slowly. His heart was still beating much too quickly, but his breathing had slowed. "Did...did I p-pass out?" he asked, voice thick.

"N-no," said Latvia, "But you were a-about to, if you had been standing for j-just a second longer." Latvia sat down and gazed at Estonia with concern. "You d-don't usually...act like this, you know," he observed bluntly.

Estonia raised an eyebrow. "Huh? What do you mean - 'like this?'"

"W-well, it's like you h-had a panic attack or something. That's n-never happened to you before."

_How would Latvia know that? And why did he care? _Estonia shrugged and drew his brows together.

"Something m-must have been really wrong for you to a-almost pass out," Latvia continued, completely oblivious to Estonia's frowning expression.

"Yeah." Estonia shut his eyes for a moment. _Yes, something _is _wrong. Running out of food in one month? That's pretty bad. _He opened his eyes and sighed when he saw the inquisitive look on Latvia's face. He really didn't want to tell Latvia about the food; the young Baltic shouldn't have to worry himself with it right now.

"So, wh-what's wrong?" Latvia asked.

_Curse Latvia and his stupid blunt questions! _"Uh, just something about the fallout shelter," Estonia said without looking up. He pressed his palms into his eyes and sighed.

Latvia shivered; obviously Estonia didn't want to tell him. "Does L-lithuania know?"

"No." But Estonia probably _should _tell Lithuania. The oldest Baltic would definitely be able to come up with a solution in no time...or at least break the news to Latvia without making him have a heart attack.

Estonia stood up abruptly. "Latvia, you know what?" The room spun, and he held an arm out for balance before getting his bearings again.

"Wh-what?" Latvia asked, eyes widening in trepidation.

"I think I'll go tell Lithuania what's going on, and then h-he'll tell you! Got that?"

Latvia shook his head vigorously. "_N-nē_!" he yelled.

"Why not?" pleaded Estonia in frustration.

Latvia's face scrunched up, as if he was about to cry. "Because...b-because I want to go with y-you, and I w-want to know what's going on! Don't leave me by myself h-here, p-please!" he whined.

Estonia sighed. "Fine," he grumbled, "you can come with me. Just...d-don't pass out when you hear what I'm going to say."

"I w-won't, I promise!" said Latvia. He grabbed a flashlight and switched it on, pointing it in the direction of Russia and Lithuania. "Come on, E-estonia, _iesim_!"

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><p>Lithuania stood in a very precarious position, teetering and off-balance. Russia's large hand had gripped his ankle tightly and pulled his leg so much to the side that he could barely stand straight.<p>

His face was pale and sweaty, and the Lithuanian shook uncontrollably. A nasty-looking stain from his vomit spread down the front of his green uniform, and on top of that, he had a horrible taste in his mouth.

Russia squeezed his ankle harder, fingernails cutting into his skin. Tears welled up in Lithuania's eyes. "R-russia, p-please-"

The Russian's clothes and body were caked with dried blood and he lay flat on the ground, but that didn't stop him from giggling, his laughter dark and sadistic. "_Nyet, Litva,_ you will stay with me forever and ever!"

Tears ran silently down Lithuania's face, and he tilted his head up in a hopeless attempt to stop them from falling. That was when Lithuania saw Estonia and Latvia approaching, their jaws dropped in stunned surprise.

Russia saw them, too.

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><p><em><span><strong>Translations:<strong>_

_**Litva: Lithuania (Russian)**_

_**Üks, kaks, kolm: One, two, three (Estonian)**_

_**Nē: No (Latvian)**_

_**Iesim: Let's go (Latvian)**_

_**Nyet: No (Russian)**_

_**Hehe, I wrote this faster than I thought I would! I hope you liked this chapter. All your reviews, follows, and favorites make me feel so happy!**_

_**And special thanks to my guest reviewers! I really loved reading your reviews, and as I can't reply to you through private messaging, I'm just going to have to thank you here. :)**_


	4. Chapter 4

_**I'm so sorry for not updating in a while! One of my New Year's resolutions was actually to update more, so I'll try harder to do that next time. :) Anyways, I hope this new chapter will make up for the long wait!**_

_**Also, I rewrote chapter 2 and took out the part where Estonia thinks about independence. I just thought it was making the plot too complicated, so I decided to change it. You can reread it if you want - it's only slightly different.**_

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><p>Russia's skin burned as if it was going to peel off, tingling and itching uncontrollably. His stomach heaved with nausea, and the woozy Russian felt sick every time he tried to move. His barely conscious mind, fogged with pain, could only focus on one thing: his grip on Lithuania's ankle.<p>

Lithuania was the only thing keeping Russia from losing his sanity. The trembling nation was his anchor, his only comfort in this horrible torture, and Russia was _never_ going to let this comfort go away, no matter what.

Pain shot through his outstretched arm, and the Russian screeched in agony. _When will the pain stop? What did I ever do to deserve this?_ Tears pooled in his eyes and instantly irritated the burnt skin on his face, feeling as if Russia was being scorched over and over. He tightened his grip on Lithuania's ankle, trying not to cry. Even crying, which was usually a comfort, would hurt him.

Russia could do nothing but stare straight ahead, but even that was uncomfortable. His eyes wouldn't focus, so when two figures approached, they just looked like big blurs. _Who were they? Would they help him? _When the figures got closer, Russia could see that one was wearing a blue uniform and the other was wearing red.

The boy in red spoke with a trembling voice that sounded distant and echoey. "L-lithuania? A-are you okay?"

Russia's eyes widened. _Lithuania? Why would that boy want to help Lithuania instead of me?_ The boy stepped closer, and Russia could see that he was one of his Baltics, Latvia.

A spasm of pain went through Russia's back and he yelled, eyes bulging. He involuntarily pulled Lithuania's leg closer to him. Lithuania stiffened and yelped, but Russia didn't notice. _Lithuania doesn't need any help. He's helping me right now._

Now the other figure - _Estonia_, Russia deduced, even though he looked like just a smear of blue, warily approached the two nations. "_Pask_," Estonia muttered, voice distant and faint just like Latvia's was. _Was there something wrong with Russia's ears?_

The Estonian spoke again, voice quavering. "L-lithuania, what...what's Russia doing to you?" The blurry figure that was Latvia hid behind Estonia's legs.

Lithuania took a deep breath to speak. But by now, Russia had it all figured out. _They want to take my Litva away from me!_

He had to stop them. If Lithuania went away, no one would be there for him - he would be left to suffer alone!

Russia lifted up an arm. _Hurts...so much pain..._He could smell his own burnt skin. He retched and gagged, holding his breath so not to breathe in his own stench. With his whole body quivering with the effort, Russia reached for Lithuania's long hair that was within his reach, just...barely…

His fingers closed around the soft strands of Lithuania's hair, and he pulled hard until Lithuania's ear was at his mouth level...that is, nearly all the way down to the floor. Completely disregarding the frightened look on the Baltic nation's face, he whispered the only words that he knew would let him have his Litva all to himself.

"If Estonia and Latvia don't go away, I will kill _you_ along with them."

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><p>Latvia had never been more exhausted in his life. He wasn't one for stressful situations, and the events of this evening had definitely taken a toll on his body. Any adrenaline that he had had earlier had worn off long ago, and Latvia now saw everything through a sleepy haze.<p>

Blearily, Latvia followed Estonia over to where Russia was lying. For a moment, all he could see was Russia's injuries, which were worse than anything the Latvian had ever seen before. He felt sick.

Russia was barely moving, and his eyes were glazed and brimming with tears. Latvia suddenly felt a strange heaviness in his chest - sadness? Did he...feel sympathy for Russia?

_No, _Latvia reproached himself. _Why would he ever feel bad for Russia? _He was probably just tired.

Latvia looked over at Lithuania, forcing himself to ignore the Russian lying on the floor, but he definitely wasn't expecting Lithuania to look how he did. The Lithuanian looked, in a word, horrible. There was a stain on his shirt like he had vomited on himself, and he was shaking even more violently than Latvia ever had. Russia's hand clenched around his ankle.

Latvia shivered. "L-lithuania? A-are you okay?"

Lithuania didn't answer. But Estonia, who was staring fixedly at the two nations, walked nearer to take a closer look. "_Pask_," he said, looking concerned.

On the floor, Russia's other arm trembled and began to move upwards. Latvia's eyelids felt heavy, and he blinked repeatedly. _Don't fall asleep, stay awake! _

Estonia's face was drawn. He fiddled with his glasses. "L-lithuania, what...what's Russia doing to you?"

Russia looked panicked and furious, half-conscious as he was. His arm began to rise faster towards Lithuania's hair.

_Oh no, oh no, oh no! _Worst-case scenarios raced through Latvia's mind. He freaked out and ran to hide behind Estonia, shivering and shaking. _What was Russia going to do?_

Both Estonia and Latvia watched in stunned silence as Russia pulled Lithuania's head nearly all the way down to the floor. He murmured what sounded like threatening words into Lithuania's ear, and Lithuania's jaw dropped in shock.

Then, Lithuania straightened up and forced a smile onto his face. "I...just g-go away. I'm f-fine," he stammered, waving the Baltics away. Russia looked pleased.

Estonia narrowed his eyes. "D-damn, Lithuania, we all can see you're not f-fine!"

Lithuania's face was pale. "I-I am. Just...g-go." He knelt down and pretended to inspect the blisters on Russia's arm, but Latvia could see him trembling. Tears ran down the Lithuanian's face.

"L-lithuania-" Latvia began, but Estonia put an arm on his shoulder and steered him away.

"C-come on, Latvia, let's-" he hesitated. "Let's e-eat."

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><p><em><strong>I know this is a really short chapter, but I just wanted to post this so you didn't have to wait any longer for me to update. :) Hopefully I'll be able to update again a lot faster, but I'm also writing another multi-chapter story, so I'm going to alternate between the two. <strong>_

_**Translations:**_

_**Litva: Lithuania (Russian). I think of this as Russia's "pet name" for Lithuania, kind of like how Poland calls him Liet, but in a more creepy and intimidating way. Russia's going to say this a lot in the story, so this is probably going to be the last time I'll translate it for you. :)**_

_**Pask: Sh*t (Estonian)**_

_**I hope everyone had a great New Year's, and reviews, follows, and favorites are greatly appreciated!**_


	5. Chapter 5

_**I'm so sorry for the long wait! I was overwhelmed with homework ever since school started up again, and also this chapter took longer to write than I thought it would. :)**_

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><p>Latvia blearily stumbled over to a chair and sat down, trembling. He couldn't think straight; disturbing thoughts raced non-stop through his mind. <em>What kind of things is Russia doing to Lithuania now? Will Toris be okay? Why didn't I say something to him when I had the chance?<em> He whined and dropped his head down onto the table.

Someone tapped him on the shoulder, and the Latvian looked up, rubbing his heavy eyes. Estonia stood looking down at him, face lined. "Try to stay awake a bit longer, Latvia."

"But I'm s-so tired…" He propped his head up with his hands and blinked hard.

"Me too," said the Estonian. "Me too. But...we have to e-eat before we can sleep."

Latvia sighed. His stomach growled, and he felt sick with hunger along with his exhaustion. "What will we ea-"

His mind abruptly flashed back to the way Russia's hand had grabbed Lithuania's ankle, clenching it until Lithuania's face was distorted with pain. The way tears had run down the Lithuanian's face, and...the way he had said he was "_fine"._

Latvia shook his head in despair. _Why was he thinking about his stupid stomach when he should be more worried about Lithuania? Was he that selfish?_

Estonia must have noticed a sudden change in the young Baltic's expression, because he put his hand gently on Latvia's shoulder. "It's okay. S-stop worrying; there's nothing we could have done about it."

Latvia looked up at Estonia again, taking in his pale face and nervous eyes. "I-I-" All his built-up emotions from this horrible evening rose up inside him and came pouring out. "I _c-can't _s-stop!" he sobbed, hands grabbing at his hair. "I-I just want L-lithuania to be _o-okay!_" Tears rolled down his face.

The Estonian looked stricken for a moment, then patted his back comfortingly. "H-he'll be fine. You'll see - he a-always is."

_Is Estonia trying to convince himself, too? _Latvia took a deep, shuddering breath. "B-but he just d-doesn't _listen!_" he cried, sniffing. "And R-russia always h-hurts him, b-but he...he a-always...I-I just don't u-understand!"

Estonia's face fell. "I know, Latvia. I know." He rested his palms flat on the table. "W-what you need to understand is that Lithuania...a-always puts other people before himself."

Latvia looked up at Estonia with teary eyes. "Wh-what do you mean?"

The Estonian sighed. "He cares so much about helping others that he j-just completely disregards his own health. A-and he doesn't know…" He trailed off, looking worriedly down at his feet.

"D-doesn't know what?"

"Doesn't know that when he's hurt, it h-hurts us, too." Estonia let out a deep breath, then backed away from the table. "Alright, now it's time to eat. I'll go get some f-food, and-"

"W-wait," Latvia stammered out.

Estonia stopped and turned. "What?"

"D-don't go. I don't w-want to be a-alone." Latvia choked back a sob.

Estonia shook his head. "No, it's better for you to s-stay here. I'll be back soon, I promise."

"That's what L-lithuania said, a-and _he_ didn't c-come back!"

The Estonian frowned. "Look, Latvia, that doesn't have anything to do-"

"Y-yes, it _does_! W-why can't I go w-with you?"

"You...you just c-can't!" Estonia's face was red, and he looked nervously toward the food shelves on the other side of the room. "I...there's some things that you just d-don't need to see right now."

"Wh-what? I want to s-see! I w-want to know wh-what's going on!" Latvia's eyes were wide. He absolutely _hated _being left out of things!

Estonia balled his hands into fists. "N-no! I'll show you tomorrow, maybe, but not now!"

"But-" Latvia stammered. But Estonia had already turned away, walking purposefully towards the food shelves.

Latvia mournfully watched him leave, head overwhelmed with worry. All he could think of right then was his own exhaustion. He yawned and rested his head on his arms, adjusting his position in the chair.

_Wait- _Estonia's voice resonated in his head: _We have to eat before we sleep, Latvia!_ But Latvia sleepily stuck his tongue out at the imaginary Estonian. _Who cares, Mr. I-Have-A-Secret? I'm not even hungry anymore! _He shut his eyes, reveling in the dark blackness of his own mind. And before any worries or anxious thoughts could come to frighten him, Latvia fell into a deep sleep.

Only one thought crossed his mind before he sank into dreamland: _I've got to find out what Estonia's secret is!_

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><p>Estonia walked away, fidgeting with the buttons on his shirt. <em>I was right not to tell Latvia about the food, right? He got so worried about Lithuania, this could send him over the edge! <em>He shivered; it had become cold in the little room. Estonia stuffed his hands in his pockets. _Oh, who am I kidding? I'll have to tell him eventually._

The Estonian sighed and approached the food shelves in trepidation. _Now, how to deal with this..._He took a jar off the shelf and inspected it carefully, turning it around in his hands. "_Peanut Butter", _it said in blocky Cyrillic letters. He put it back and picked up a small box: "_Crackers". _He shrugged; it wasn't much, but it would have to be dinner for tonight.

With the crackers in one hand and the peanut butter in another, Estonia hurried back to the table in time to see that Latvia had fallen asleep. _Pask_. He didn't want to wake the Latvian, but the young teen needed to eat eventually!

After hovering over the sleeping boy and debating for a moment whether to wake him, Estonia decided to let him sleep for a few more minutes. He opened up the cracker box and poured its contents out, frowning as he saw that only half the box was filled. "_Pask,"_ he cursed out loud. The peanut butter was nearly empty, too, because of those stupid Soviet food shortages.

_We're going to have to do some serious rationing,_ he thought with a sigh. After much consideration, he allotted seven crackers each to him and Latvia, then stuck his finger into the peanut butter - he hadn't found any eating utensils during his exploration earlier.

After spreading small amounts of peanut butter on every cracker, Estonia was left exhausted and hungry with a sticky finger. Stomach grumbling, he gobbled down his crackers in two seconds flat, then eyed Latvia's share greedily.

_Should I…? _he couldn't help thinking. He _was _hungry, and Latvia was asleep and would never know… His hand slowly moved towards the crackers, and Estonia's stomach rumbled louder. But then he spotted Lithuania in his peripheral vision, exhausted and unsteady on his feet, using the bottom of his shirt to soak up Russia's blood.

His face fell, and he scowled at the crackers. _What is wrong with you, Estonia?_ he reproached himself. _Why do you have to be so greedy? Just look at Lithuania, sacrificing himself for Russia, and _he _didn't get any food! _

Estonia stared down at his feet, exhausted and depressed. He rubbed his tired eyes and turned away from Latvia; the least he could do after nearly taking his food was let the boy sleep. He shuffled over to the bottom bunk bed closest to the wall, and pulled back the blankets to find a hard, dusty mattress waiting for him. Too tired to even care, Estonia lowered his weary body onto the bed.

And that's when he felt it: that familiar dry feeling at the back of his throat. The peanut butter had made him thirsty, and now he was going to have to get a drink of water.

He groaned and got up from the bed reluctantly, trying not to think about the daunting task ahead of him. For when one is in a fallout shelter after a nuclear explosion, finding water may be nearly impossible.

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><p><em><span><strong>Translations:<strong>_

_**Pask: Sh*t (Estonian)**_

_**Well, here I am ending this chapter with a cliffhanger! Next chapter is probably going to focus more on Lithuania and Russia's "situation". :)**_

_**Again, please review! Seeing new reviews in my inbox makes me smile, and it doesn't have to be a whole essay or anything! (except it would be awesome if it was!) :)**_


	6. Chapter 6

_**I know I should be writing "Play on, Hetalia" now, but I really had a lot of inspiration for this chapter, so…here it is!**_

_**To explain some confusion, Russia is very delirious in this chapter, and he hallucinates/dreams that he's back in Leningrad moments before the nuclear bomb falls. That part will be in italics. Also, Leningrad = St. Petersburg. There will be some historical notes at the end, if you're still confused. :)**_

_**And now I'll answer the guest review! I'm so sorry that I haven't been answering these at all… :)**_

_**Guest: You're welcome! Yep, poor Toris and the other Baltics. They suffer a lot in my stories, it seems. :) Yeah, I guess Estonia was pretty analytical in that chapter. And Latvia really is oblivious. :) Anyways, I'm so glad you think my story is interesting! That makes me feel really happy. Thank you for all your nice reviews!**_

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><p>Tears streamed down Lithuania's face as he bent down over Russia, wiping up the blood and pus that trickled down the tall man's leg. The Russian's blisters had popped, creating a nasty, bloody liquid that smelled sick and rotten. Lithuania could do nothing but hold his breath and weep silently as he sponged up the blood with the only cloth he had: his own shirt.<p>

The exhausted nation shakily stood up to wring out his shirt, moving deliberately so not to bother the half-conscious Russian. Black spots distorted his vision as he stood, and the Lithuanian swayed dizzily, reaching out for anything that could help him keep his balance. His legs quaked. The faint light from the flashlight seemed to dim even more, and objects began to fade from his vision.

Was he about to pass out? What...when was the last time he'd eaten? Images of his noon lunch swam in his vision: burnt borscht made by Latvia that he'd barely touched. _Oh no…_ He swayed again, cold sweat pouring down his forehead.

If he passed out, what would happen to him? Would anyone know to come over and help? Latvia was probably sleeping, and Estonia couldn't come over because Russia - _oh no. _What would _Russia_ do to him?

He _couldn't _pass out, he just _couldn't_! Trembling violently, Lithuania forced himself to take deep breaths. The metallic scent of blood immediately filled his nose, and he gagged. _No, you can't throw up, either! _Woozily, he lowered himself down to the ground where he put his head between his knees. _Maybe this would help…_

After a few moments of trying to calm his nervous breathing, the dizzy feeling gradually faded, and Lithuania didn't feel as much like he was going to throw up anymore. He slowly lifted his head back up and let out a quavering sigh, hands worriedly pressed to his empty stomach. Just because he had stopped himself from fainting this one time didn't mean that it could happen again.

Russia's arm moved abruptly in his peripheral vision, and Lithuania's eyes flashed fearfully towards the Russian's bloody body, his sweaty face, his flushed cheeks...

_Something was seriously wrong._ With a trembling hand, Lithuania reached out to touch the Russian's forehead. It was burning hot. He moved away in a panic, heart pounding. The evidence was undeniable.

Russia...had a fever. And when a nation has a fever, it means something horrible has just happened.

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><p>Chills shook the Russian, and he shivered, trying in vain to soak up any warmth from his long, thick coat. He stared up with bleary eyes at his ever-faithful Lithuania, trying to get across the message that he was still in severe, biting pain...and that he was really, really, cold! He could feel the goosebumps popping up on his arms and legs, battling with his burn marks and blisters for space.<p>

_Please help me, Lithuania~!_ _I'm hurt, and scared, and cold, and-_

And then, he felt burning hot, hotter than he ever had been before. His brow dripped sweat into his eyes, and the Russian, all wrapped up tightly in his coat, was in agony. He tried to move, to get away from this oppressing piece of clothing, but..._he couldn't!_

_He couldn't move. _With that realization, his eyes opened wide and darted towards Lithuania. _What's going on? Why...what's wrong with me?_

And then, right in front of his eyes, the room disintegrated around him.

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><p><em>A surge of cold hit Russia immediately, and he quickly shielded his face against the rushing wind and snow with his arm. He stood like that for a moment, shivering, then he opened his eyes.<em>

_He was standing on a street in Leningrad. _

_Russia gaped in surprise. How in the world did he get here? And...how was he able to move again? He stretched an arm experimentally, then his legs. To his astonishment, they all worked perfectly. And to make it even stranger, his injuries and pain had vanished, too! _

_Confused, Russia slowly wandered over to a small bakery. He was hungry for the first time in hours, so he might as well eat now. As was the Soviet norm, a long line of exhausted people stretched out of the store, and Russia joined the line, marveling at how normal the world seemed. Hadn't there just been a nuclear explosion?_

_A young teen with untidy blond hair stood ahead of him in line. He wore the usual Soviet schoolboy uniform, a dark blue suit and tie, and when Russia approached, he turned around with fear in his light violet eyes._

"Zdravstvuyte," _said Russia, smiling at the boy. _Hello_._

_The boy, legs quaking slightly, nodded his reply, and Russia surveyed the other ten or so people in the line, mostly just women bundled up in layers of clothing. A woman walked out of the store with a small loaf of bread in her hand, and the line moved up a bit. _

_Bored, Russia's eyes moved back to the boy. He was just standing there, trembling, a small string bag clutched in his hand. The boy looked awfully familiar for some reason, and kind of reminded Russia of someone he knew...but who? He ran through a list of names in his head, trying to match any of them up with this face._

_And that's when the sirens began to blare. The people in the line looked at each other in shock, then one of them screamed, "Quick! Get inside the store!"_

_There was a mad rush towards the bakery as every person out on the street scrambled for safety. Russia just stood there in confusion, watching everyone run. He caught snippets of sentences like "nuclear bomb", "run", and "fallout shelter", but when he tried to move, he couldn't. _Why couldn't he move?

_The boy started to run, then tripped over a woman's foot, falling hard onto the frozen sidewalk. Tears filled his eyes, and he looked back at Russia helplessly. Russia tried in vain to reach an arm out to help the boy, but it wouldn't budge. All he could do was stand there and watch a small shadow in the sky that was getting bigger and bigger and bigger…_

_There was a blinding flash, then a mix of fire, noise, and heat. The sky itself seemed to catch on fire, and Russia was blown backwards like a leaf onto his back. Looking up in horror, he managed to just roll out of the way before the bakery collapsed, rubble falling everywhere._

_People screamed. A woman vanished, leaving an ashen shadow burned onto a half-collapsed wall in her place. People's clothing and skin sizzled in a fiery inferno, and barely recognizable bodies littered the ground._

_A scream came from under a mass of dead bodies, and Russia's eyes moved toward the sound. He only caught one glimpse of the violet-eyed boy before the whole street erupted in flames…_

_And right before everything turned black, Russia realized who the boy reminded him of._

_Latvia._

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><p>Russia thrashed about on the ground in the fallout shelter, eyes rolled up into his head. "<em>Nyet<em>!" he screeched, sweat pouring down his face. "_Nyeeet_!"

Lithuania stumbled unsteadily away from the screaming Russian, head fuzzy with dizziness. _Russia is delirious_, he told himself, _and I have to do something! _Wiping his sweaty palms on his pants, the Lithuanian took a deep, shuddering breath.

He would have to get help, or else Russia wouldn't survive.

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><p><em><strong>Hehe, this was a pretty intense chapter! (Of course, this whole story is intense, but anyways…) So to explain more, Russia was hallucinating that he was in Leningrad because his fever was so high. There also was some foreshadowing...but the thing that I foreshadowed isn't going to happen for a while in the story. :)<strong>_

_**So why does Russia have a fever? You'll find out in a chapter or two!**_

_**Translations:**_

_**Zdravstvuyte: Hello (Russian)**_

_**Nyet: No (Russian)**_

_**Historical Notes**_

_**St. Petersburg is called Leningrad because, first of all, the Russians renamed the city Petrograd during WWI because St. Petersburg sounded too German, and the Germans were the enemy then. They changed it to Leningrad in 1924 to honor Lenin.**_

_**In the Soviet Union, there were always long lines stretching out of stores. This was because there was usually not enough food stocked to feed everyone, so if you wanted food, you would have to line up at a store really early and wait for hours.**_

_**Stores didn't supply bags, so you would have to bring your own bag with you. That's why the boy who looked like Latvia had a string bag with him.**_

_**I actually got most of my information from the website "englishrussia dot com", from an article called "Soviet Reality That Seems Never Existed." That article has pictures of Soviet stores and school uniforms, and it might help you visualize this chapter better. :)**_

_**Please don't forget to review!**_


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